Edge piercing means and blank conveying means



P 1963 H. w; MOSER ETAL 3,102,632

EDGE PIERCING MEANS AND BLANK comma mus Filed July 16, 1959 0' 0 w 2 7 E w 4 mo fl 1% )2 FIFO mm 5 x 6 W4 INVENTORS HENRY W MOSER HANSPETER WEBER ATTYS,

H55. FIEE.

5 m VMQ K iii United States Patent Ofiice 3.1%,632 Patented Sept. 3, 1963 3,162,632 EDGE PlERtIlNG MEANS AND BLANK CONVEYING MEANS Henry W. Moser wd Hanspeter Weber, Haddonfield,

Ni, assignors to Samuel M. Langston @ompany, Carnden, N..l., a corporation of New Jersey Filed July 16, 1959, Ser. No. 827,658 4 Elairns. (Cl. 198-178) The present application relates broadly to an improved type gripper adapted for grasping an edge of a sheet or corrugated board, fiber cardboard or other penetratable material such as metal foil, plastic, fabric and the like.

More specifically the present invention relates to gripper means of a new and novel type having specific adaptability for transferring articles to be worked from one station to succeeding work stations in timed sequence with Work performing members and which grippers can be operatively associated with a pair of spaced chains or the like.

The present invention has particular adaptability for use in automatically fed platen presses which, as is wellknown, require a particular type of Work sheet or piece transferring operation intermittently from one position to another in timed sequence with the operation of the platen press. Such a platen press is shown in detail in copending patent application SN. 492,897, filed March 8, 1955, now Patent No. 3,004,456 and entitled Machines for Performing ()perations on Sheet Materials," assigned to a common assignee with the present application. For details of construction of such a platen press structure per se, reference is made to said copending application.

Reference is also herein made to a copending application filed in the same of Hanspeter Weber, entitled intermittent Motion Drive Mechanism, SN. 836,682, filed August 28, 1959, which application describes in detail the use and operation of the grippers of the present invention together with means for intermittently driving or moving the grippers in timed sequence with various other components in the over-all machine.

In machines of the type referred to and known in the art, a plurality of grippers are utilized which are mounted at spaced intervals on cross bars which are in turn equally spaced and connected at each end to endless chains, which chains are placed in motion intermittently so that the gripper bars execute a motion of translation. The grippers thereon are capable of transferring a sheet or blank from one position to another and means must be provided so that the grippers clamp the leading edge of the sheet material at the feed end of the machine and after transferring it through one or more work stations then transfer it to the discharge station where a mechanism discharges the blank onto a stack or take-away conveyor.

Grippers heretofore utilized in conjunction with the aforementioned mechanisms are usually identical and are spaced at intervals across the length of the cross bars. These heretofore known grippers are usually so constructed as to include one fixed jaw and a movable jaw with the two adapted to be held closed by a coil or flat spring. One or both of these types of jaws are usually serrated to insure a more positive grip. Means must also be provided for selectively opening the movable jaw to permit feeding and discharging the sheet or blank. Existing known devices constituting grippers for flat sheets or blanks have not been wholly satisfactory for various reasons. The grippers for example, consist of a plurality of parts, some of which require movement to grip and release the sheet or blank and requiring a multiplicity of parts which must be stock piled for replacements and spares. The multiplicity of parts increases the possibility of failure with consequent costly maintenance and repair. The previously known types of grippers have also had a limited holding power which can well result in malfunctioning of the machine operation and even produce out of register work.

it is the primary object of the present invention to provide an improved type of gripper overcoming the failures and drawbacks of previous known types. The gripper of the present invention is highly effective in operation and consists of only a single part and which due to its simplicity lends itself to inexpensive duplicate fabrication. There are no moving parts or parts to get out of order or out of adjustment and malfunctioning in use has proven to be negligible. Replacement of parts due to operational failure has also proven to be negligible.

In accordance with the present invention, the grippers are adapted for piercing and penetrating through the entire leading edge of a board or sheet thickness and additional security against loosening or losing control of the blank or sheet is elfected by providing tines or prongs in the form of barbs which insures very reliable operational characteristics.

Extreme simplicity and inexpensive mounting are provided by the present invention and a wide variety of sizes and designs adapted to suit different requirements can be inexpensively made.

Additionally, the design and construction is such that stripping at the discharge station is easily, simply and reliably accomplished and imperfect sheets or blanks can be handled equally as well as perfect ones.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof when taken together with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view, partly in section, of mechanism adapted for transfer of sheets from one position to another including a feed and a discharge station;

Fit 2 is a top plan view, parts being broken away, of a portion of the mechanism of FIG. 1, taken on line 2-2 thereof;

FIG. 3 is a view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a single gripper member as connected'to a cross bar mechanism;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of a tine on the gripper showing penetration through a blank or sheet to be transferred; and

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of the prong of FIG. 5.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a schematic representation of a portion of a machine such as an automatic platen press feed device. Only such parts of the mechanism are shown herein as are necessary to an understanding of the function and operation of the grippers of the present invention. A portion of a feed table is designated at it? and which can constitute the bottom of a sheet stack or hopper support, shown in detail in said copending applications. A work piece or sheet 12 is fed over the table it} from the stack by means of a kicker feed or the like in a known manner until the leading edge thereof is in abutment with a gate member 14. A portion of a deflector mechanism is shown in the drawing including a bracket 16 keyed to register tion of the leading edge of the work sheet or piece 12 to permit it to pass beneath the tines or barbs as will appear hereinafter. A vertically movable pressure foot 24 is mounted for movement below the deflector and gate mechanism and has a groove 26 in the upper surface thereof. This pressure foot is shown in retracted position in full lines in FIG. 1.

A hook support includes a bracket 28 also mounted on register gate shaft 18 having an adjustable bolt 36 carried thereby adapted to prevent upward movement of the gripper hooks as will appear hereinafter.

Shafts 32 and 34 are suitably journalled for rotation and of these, shaft 32 constitutes a drive shaft and 3 a driven shaft. Sprocket wheels 36 are keyed on drive shaft 32 in spaced relationship and sprocket wheels 38 are keyed on shaft 34 in correspondingly spaced position thereon. Sprocket chains 40 and 42 are operatively associated with the sets of sprocket wheels. These chains are of the endless type and are shown in some detail in FIGS. 2 and 3. A plurality of feeder bars 44 are transversely arranged between the runs of the chains 40 and 42 and connected thereto in spaced relation from one another. These feeder bars preferably are in the form of elongated rectangular box construction as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The feeder bars 44 can be connected with the chains in any desired manner although as shown in FIG. 2, a desirable manner is to have spaced pins 46 of the chains pivotally journalled in inserts 4-8 which extend into the open ends of the feeder bars and are secured therein by means of rivets or the like St). The feeder bars are so spaced along the runs of the chains as to permit moving a work sheet or piece 12 to a desired working position and subsequently to move this work piece from a first station to a second station such as for discharge or the like.

At equally space-d intervals aloing one side of the feeder bars 44 there are positioned a plurality of brackets 52 which can be secured in any desired manner. As shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings, openings are provided at 54 through the side of the feeder bar in which a fastening member in the nature of a commercially available Rivnut 56 is placed and into which a screw-threaded member 58 engages. A corresponding hole is provided in the bracket at 60 to permit this installation. For the purposes of the invention, the so assembled structure must be sturdy and rigid.

A forwardly projecting portion 62 is provided on the bracket preferably of channel shaped cross section and having a thickened area at 64 which is tapped at 66. Extending transversely across the free end of the portion 62 is a recessed ledge 68. A barb member generally designated 70 having a planar base portion 72 is seated in the recess 63 and secured in position by means of screw or bolt 74 passing through an opening in the base portion 72 and through the tap openings 66. Manifestly other types of securing means could be utilized. At the outer edge of the base portion, a plurality of prongs or tines 76, 78 and 80 are provided which extend downwardly at right angles to the base and to the longitudinal path of travel of the chains. The edges of these tines are sharpened as at 82 to facilitate penetrating through a work piece or sheet. As shown in FIG. 4, the center one of the tines 78 other than having a sharpened point is substantially plain whereas the tines 76 and St) are provided with barbs at 84, the purpose of the barbs is as shown in FIG. 6 to form a secure grip on the work piece or sheet 12.

It will be noted from FIG. 2 of the drawings that a plurality of these bracket and tined members are arranged transversely across the width of the feeder bars and these composite members constitute grippers for translational movement of the work pieces from station to station.

Referring again to FIG. 1, it will be noted that as a work piece or sheet is presented to the gate 14, then during a cycle of the operation the pressure foot moves vertically upward and the tines are forced through the material of the work sheet as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, with the tines passing into the grooves 26. The brackets and gripper elements are interspaced with respect to the register gates to permit this operation and also with respect to the deflector plates and hook support brackets.

After being so impaled, the work sheet or piece, following raising of the deflector plates, supporting bolts and register gates, is moved from the position where impaled upon movement of the chains and feeder bars therewith across a table extension 86 to a position or station where the sheet is worked upon as by a platen press, not shown, and then during the next succeeding operationto a point of discharge. The work sheet or piece at the discharge station is indicated at 12a. At this position, a plurality of members 88 are operatively positioned each having thereon a substantially elliptical lower end 90 having cut-out areas or portions 92 adapted to pass around the forwardly projecting portions 62 of the grippers when moving from the position shown in full lines in FIG. 1 to that in dotted lines. During this motion, the sheet 12a is forced olf of the tines and thence falls to a position shown in broken lines at 12c. A rotatably mounted takeout roll 94 is positioned below the sheet and a pressure roll 96 is adapted for moving from the position shown in full lines in FIG. 1 to the broken line position at 96a as indicated by arrow 98. The rolls 94 and 96 then frictionally engage the so discharged sheet and upon rotation of roll 94 serve to discharge the sheet from the apparatus.

Manifestly changes in minor details of construction can be effected in the described apparatus without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as defined in and limited solely by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a machine for performing working operations on blanks of stiff material in successive stages at a plurality of spaced working positions arranged in a substantially horizontal plane, means for intermittently transferring said blanks from one said position to a subsequent one, said means including movably mounted spaced endless chains, means for moving said chains, feeder bars extending between and connected to said chains at spaced locations thereon, and tined self-contained unitary acting lank edge piercing means secured at spaced intervals to said feeder bars and said piercing means impaling through said blanks from the top along an edge thereof and for suspending the blank from the top along the impaled edge and transferring said blanks upon movement of said feeder bars solely by friction action of tines impaled in the blanks.

2. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, said tined piercing means including a plurality of spaced vertically downwardly directed tines at substantially right angles to the path of movement of said chains, said tines being pointed at their free ends and at least some of said tines having barbs thereon adapted for securely holding and vertically supporting the edges of the impaled sheets thereon.

3. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, a plurality of vertically movable pressure means below the upper run of said chain at a blank impaling station, means to move said pressure means upwardly, said pressure means having grooves in the upper ends thereof and being positioned for coaction with each said piercing means and operable upon upward movement to impale said blanks on said tines.

4. In a machine as claimed in claim 1, blank stripper means at a discharge station, said means including a striper foot having an opening therein adapted for contact with the upper surface of the material of said blank around the tines and said stripper means being operable for pressing said stripper foot substantially vertically downwardly against the upper surface of said blanks for stripping said blanks downwardly from said tines.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 6 Caps July 28, 1931 Bobst Mar. 25, 1947 Halahan et al. Nov. 4, 1952 Gegenheimer et al. Dec. 30, 1952 Norton Jan. 28, 1958 Klingler Jan. 31, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS Germany -1. Apr. 6, 1937 

1. IN A MACHINE FOR PERFORMING WORKING OPERATIONS ON BLANKS OF STIFF MATERIAL IN SUCCESSIVE STAGES AT A PLURALITY OF SPACED WORKING POSITIONS ARRANGED IN A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL PLANE, MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY TRANSFERRING SAID BLANKS FROM ONE SAID POSITION TO A SUBSEQUENT ONE, SAID MEANS INCLUDING MOVABLY MOUNTED SPACED ENDLESS CHAINS, MEANS FOR MOVING SAID CHAINS, FEEDER BARS EXTENDING BETWEEN AND CONNECTED TO SAID CHAINS AT SPACED LOCATIONS THEREON, AND TINED SELF-CONTAINED UNITARY ACTING BLANK EDGE PIERCING MEANS SECURED AT SPACED INTERVALS TO SAID FEEDER BARS AND SAID PIERCING MEANS IMPALING THROUGH SAID BLANKS FROM THE TOP ALONG AN EDGE THEREOF AND FOR SUSPENDING THE BLANK FROM THE TOP ALONG THE IMPALED EDGE AND TRANSFERRING SAID BLANKS UPON MOVEMENT OF SAID FEEDER BARS SOLELY BY FRICTION ACTION OF TINES IMPALED IN THE BLANKS. 